Automatic load-regulating means



April 13 192s. Y 1,580,431

H.-M. GASSMAN AUTOMATIC LOAD REGULATING mums Filed May23, 1925 1 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 April 13,19 6.

H. M. GASSMAN Au'ron'ng LOAD KEGULATINFMEA'NS V Filefi Maj 23, 1925 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 maintain an appronimatelyconstant load on Patented Apr. 13, 1926.

UNITED 1 STA TEf vv HO-WARD M. GASJSIMAVN, or BIRMINGHAM, ALABAMA.

" an'roma'rlc LoA'D-BEGULATING Means.

' Application fl ed May 23, 1925. serial No. 323501. 1

To (ZZZ 'wlwm z't may cancer/1.:

Be it known" hat I, I'IOWARD M. GASSMAN,

which the following is a specification.

'My invention relates to a load regulating means applicable to mills driven by steam,

air or other fluid motive power'as contrasted with the electric or belt driven mills.

The prime object of my invention is to .the power driving macl1inery for crushing, grinding or otherwiseaoting on or handling material. r

In Letters to me, I have disclosed a load regulating means as applied to electric and belt driven machinery, wherein it was sought to maintain the load reasonably constant independcntly ofthe speed byan automatic controlot the feed to the machine.

Thechief object therefore of my present invention is to adapt theprinciplesof con-,v

trol disclosed in my. saidpatent to ,the control of machinery driven by fluldfmotive power, and to this end it contemplates inter};

posing in the path ofthe {flow of theipower medium to thepriine mover a meanswhich will produce'a riable responsive to the-rate of power medium, in'association with means re-,

sponsive to this differential pressure which willwact correspondingly upon the feed of the material to be treated or haiidledj I My invention further comprises the novel details of constructionand arrangement of parts, which in their preferred embodiment only are hereinafter described and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, which form a part of this specification.

According to the drawings Fig.1 is an elevation of a steam driven cane crusher which is selected as a typical mechanism for the illustration of my invention, the steam line to the prime mover and to the drive for the feed being broken away to illustrate a suitable restricting means in the latter. 2

Fig. 2 is a detail View illustrating a modified type of Patent No. 1,450,720, I issued differential in pressure va- 'flowof the v I v p these diaphragms-are connected by an ele-] ment '25ftofl which in turn is pivot-ally connected theother end of the'lev'er 19.- The main 8' my invention in which electrical means is employed to regulate the feed by intermittently starting and stopping the.

same, responsive'to the rate of flow of tivefluid'to the prime mover.

Fig. 3 is an electrical feed control mechathe control 'valvefor the feed mechanism. Similar reference numerals refer to sim'i? lar parts throughout the, drawings." I I In the embodiment of ly'as a typical embodiment of my invention,

cane crushing rolls 1 and 2 are mountedin 'nism providing a varia-bleenergytoj actuate v invention illustrated in Fig. 1, and which is selected mere 7 e5 a suitable housing-'8 and driven by a train of gears generally designated by-the numeral L from the crank shaft 5 of'an engin'e 6 having a cylinder '7 supplied bya'main 8 with] steam or other fluid power medium. 'The mill is provided with a] conveyor 9 which g isdriven by a belt 10 from a steam engine f 11 having its cylinder 12 supplied with mo tive fluid by a line'13, preferably connected .to the. main 8. The material that has been "elevated is delivered by a chute ,14 to the j crusher mus; Iinterposein'the steam main I .8 a conventional cut-off va'lve15 and in the line 13 I provided 'a cut-ofl valve 16 and a;

throttle valve 17 actuated by a stemfl8 jcon= nected to ,a'lev'er 19 having a fixed pivot2 0 -j preferably formed by a lug 21 rigidly mounted on thefbracket 22.} Thisbrack et 'has upper and lower .parallel legs and un 'der the upper, leg is mounted a diaphragm 23 and 'onthe upper face ofthelower member is mounted a diaphragm-24. The free ends of diaphragms 23, and 25 are connectedto the yQthe pipes 26 and 27 respectively,

and'lfinterposein this main between the points of connection therewith of these pipes 26 and many suitable means for producing a differential pressure re'sponsiveto variations to the rate of flow of the power 'medium. The means shown is an orifice plate 28 having an Orifice 29 therein smaller than the cross-sectional area of t-he main 8;. The

plate 28 is mounted in between flanges 30 water,'there will be a change in the difl'erential pressure, which acting through the then unbalanced diaphragms 23 and 24, will pr 0-.

duce a movement of the lever 19 that will act on the throttle valve 17 to either increase,

and 27 on opposite sides of the orifice plate 28 to the main 8. These diaphragms, in the manner already described, act on a lever 31 pivoted above to the bracket and pivotally connected at an intermediate point to the connecting element 25 between the diaphragms and carrying at its free end a contact 32 adapted to open or close a circuit 33 which includes a relay 34 and is connected across a power supply circuit 35 in which is included a solenoid 36 operating the valve 17 in theline 13 to the feed drive.

Whenever a variation in the differential pressure occurs, and the diaphragms move responsive thereto sufliciently to make or break the relay circuit 34, the relay will act to open or close the power circuit 35 and to energize or deenergize the solenoid'36, thus opening or closing the valve 17. This will.

produce an intermittent control of the feed by stopping and starting the feed mechanismas contrasted with the throttling regulationdescribed in connection with Fig; 1.

In Fig. 3 I show the orifice plate 28 interposed inthe main 8 but here, in lieu of the diaphragms, I provide a U-shaped tube 37' connected to the main 8 on oppositeosides of the plate 28 and containing therein a body of mercury 38 which is in contact with 'a register 39 connected to one side of a circuit tO that includes a solenoid 4:1 for operating a valvel'? in the feed line 13. Thebattery 42 or other source of electrical energy is included in this circuitlOwhich on its other side is connected ,to the mercury in thetube' 37. The variations in pressure will'act to vary the extent of the immersion of the resistor in the mercury and will thus vary the energy of the current flowing through the solenoid and acting to open or close the control valve l7'for the feed mechanism.

Though I have described with great particularitythe details of the embodiment of the invention herein'shown, it is not to be construed that I am limited thereto, as changes in arrangement and substitution of equivalents may be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the inven tion as defined inztheraprpended claims.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as-new and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. An automatic load control mechanism for power driven machinery, comprising a motive fluid driven prime mover havinga supply main for the motive fluid, means to regulate the feed of material to be acted upon by said prime mover, means to create a differential pressure responsive to: the variations in flow of motive fluid to the prime mover, and means responsive to the variation in such differential to regulate said feed.

2. An automatic load control mechanism? according to claim 1, in which the means for creating a differential pressure are interposed in the main, and means responsive to the variations in differential are connected to the main line.

3.An automatic load control mechanism according to claim 1, in which the means'for" creating a differential pressure are interposed in the main, and means responsive to the variations in differential are connected to said mam llne ad acent to the means for producing the differential pressure therein;

l. In an automatic load. regulating means, a motive fluid driven prime mover having a supply main, and elements'driven thereby for acting on material, means to feed material to sald elements means to regulate'said' ential in pressure in said main, elements: responsive to the VZtIltttlOIlSlIl such differential pressure, and means controlled by said elements to increase or decrease the'feed' responsive to a decrease or increase-of its controlling differential pressure.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature.

HOWARD GASSMAN; 

